House Stark (The Grand Campaign)
The Starks are an ancient house descended from Bran the Builder, a legendary figure from the Age of Heroes said to have raised their ancestral home at Winterfell thousands of years in the past, as well as the Wall. They are descendants of the First Men and still follow some of their ancient traditions and the old gods of the forest. The Starks were Kings of Winter in the North for thousands of years from the Age of Heroes, possibly beginning with Bran the Builder. Ever since Bran constructed the Wall, the Starks have been friends of the Night's Watch, and have manned the Wall for thousands of years. The Night's King, the attainted 13th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, is said to have been a Stark, among his many possible origins. The Starks also helped repel several major wildling invasions, such as when they and their Umberbannermen defeated the Kings-Beyond-the-Wall like the brothers Gendel and Gorne, as well as Bael the Bard, who both sired and fought a Stark. The ancient Starks gradually defeated rival kings, such as the Barrow Kings to their south and the Red Kings to their east. For several millennia, the Starks were not the uncontested Kings in the North, but their primary antagonists, the Boltons of the Dreadfort, swore fealty some 1,000 years ago, ending their flesh-flaying ways. Meanwhile, King Jon Stark drove pirates from the White Knife, and the Wolf's Den was built at its mouth. This stronghold was often granted to sons and grandsons of the King in the North; one such branch, the Greystarks, was extinguished after allying with the Boltons against the Starks. The Wolf's Den was eventually granted to the Manderlys, a house exiled from the Reach and taken in by the Starks. The Manderlys developed the city of White Harbor around the castle. King Jon's son, Rickard, defeated the Marsh King and married his daughter, bringing the Neck into Winterfell's realm under the lordship of House Reed. The Karstarks were founded when Karlon Stark, brother to the reigning king, helped crush a rebel lord and was granted a keep for his service. Finally, the Mormonts were granted Bear Island when King Rodrik Stark won it from the ironborn in a wrestling match. The Starks fought the Arryns of the Vale after the Rape of the Three Sisters, eventually ceding control of the islands. King Torrhen Stark "The King Who Knelt" Torrhen Stark received a raven from a certain Orys Baratheon, asking his daughter's hand in a marriage, when he read about him being the half-brother of Aegon Targaryen he accepts the offer... Including a second letter. After Aegon invaded the Vale and took it, he went for the North which Torrhen surrendered, but he was named Lord Paramount of The North, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, people named Torrhen; The King Who Knelt. His vassals did not approve that Torrhen bent the knee and revolted twice. A year after the revolts, Torrhen took his own life. Lord Brandon Stark "The Black Wolf" Brandon rose as Lord of Winterfell, Lord Paramount of the North and Warden of the North after his father's dead. His vassals wanted him to restore the Kingdom of the North, but he refused in which his vassals revolted, whom he put down with the aid of Orys Baratheon Brandon's daughter was named the Queen of Beauty at the Tourney of Oldtown by Jaeherys Targaryen, the second son of King Aegon, instead of his wife, A lannister. Brandon saw Lord Orys Baratheon as another brother, one he never really had due to his bad relations with his brothers, Orys sent two of his sons to the Lord of Winterfell to be educated, which he accepted. Lord Brandon would show his true face when Orys Baratheon was killed by his own brother, Aegon Targaryen and when Orys' daughter was executed, the King's niece and so was it Brandon's. After that, King Aegon demanded Brandon to give his daughter to the crown prince, in which he refused several times, marrying her off to the new bannerman of the Wolfswood, House Forrester. The King was enraged and so was Brandon, calling the realm in a rebellion which would turn in a complete failure when Brandon gets betrayed by his own bannermen in Moat Cailin and is forced to abdicate to his 8 year old son. It is said that Brandon has grown wroth in his exile and has banded together with other lords that were banished from their lands, plotting the downfall of House Targaryen. The last words of Brandon Stark were stored by the maesters in Winterfell before he fled for his life, it is hidden to be given to Benjen when he is of age. "I have been betrayed by my own bannermen, by former friends, by men I shared wine and bread...but a Stark does not bend easily... My father did but he paid the ultimate price for it.. his life. My house might be in danger with a king like Aegon in power, but he will not live forever... neither his dragons. We will operate in the dark.. In the shadows where the dragons cannot find us.. I might have been scarred by betrayal, but I do not kneel easily to him.. He does not know that I'm still alive.. and when he does it will be too late... The North Remembers... And I will have my vengenace.. Not for myself.. but for Orys.. A brother I never had... He will have his vengance... The North will remember." Brandon Stark turned into a pirate lord of the stepstones and led many raids against Aegon until his final capture by Aegon, knowning Aegon he fought him in personal combat, prefering to die with a sword in his hand than get eaten alive by a dragon. His wish was granted as he died fighting Aegon in the dragonpits. Lord Benjen Stark "The Lost Wolf" Lord Benjen Stark rose as Lord of Winterfell when his father got deposed by his own bannermen, it is currently unknown where Benjen is as he has not been seen since the battle of Moat Cailin where the Northern Army was crushed by the forces loyal to the dragons. Before his disappearing, he was known as a greedy and proud boy, but also as a shy boy. Most of the bannermen sworn to House Stark presume that he is dead, killed by the lords to punish Lord Brandon, even thought most of them betrayed Brandon themselves, which questions this statement. House Mudd of the Neck remains silent about it and refuses to speak about Benjen, it is presumed that they are holding Benjen in Greywater Watch or they know where he is, but they remain silent. Just like Benjen, the ancestral sword of House Stark, Ice, has disappeared and is presumed to be either stolen or lost. Benjen revealed himself when he was 18 years old, all that time he was hiding in Riverrun, training and preparing himself to rule the North. He would have several sons, but two of them got murdered by his own bannerman, leaving his imbecile son as the heir of the North. House Bolton of Karhold and House Bolton of the Dreadfort revolted during the end of Benjen's reign, they were utterly crushed and Benjen appointed his second living son as the Lord of the Dreadfort and his third living son as the Lord of Karhold. Benjen died peacefully in Winterfell and was placed in the crypts of Winterfell. Lord Torrhen Stark "The Late Lord" Torrhen inherited his father's lands after his death, he is a simple boy, lacking any intelligence, it is said that his wife, a bolton, ruled the North instead. His reign was troubled, with his vassals revolting several times he abandoned his duties as the Warden of the North by fighting House Manderly instead of defending the Wall against the invading Wildlings, resulting in House Baratheon being appointed as Warden of the North. This also caused the people to name Torrhen the Late Lord Stark. Torrhen has several children, but none of them inherited their father's intelligence(retardness). Torrhen Stark chose the side of the King in the faith uprising to show that House Stark was loyal to the crown, in the end Torrhen lost his life in the uprising, together with two-third of his northern army killed off. When one of the dragonslayers was captured by the remaining northmen, they chopped off his head for vengenace. Lady Paramount Beth Stark "The She-Wolf" Lady Beth inherited her father's lands after his death in Oldtown, her entire reign she would be marching with her men. Beth would march up 10 times up north, to the Wall, to defend it from the invading Wildlings, with the wall itself severly weakened it relied on the Starks of Winterfell and the Baratheons of Hammerhorn for aid, which was often too late. Beth often has nightmares of the only military mistake she made during a defence on the wall. She left too few men to defend Brandon's Gift, when she returned they were decimated by the Wildlings. Beth was displeased with the lack of attention of the other lords of the realm to defend the Night's Watch, in the end thousands of northmen gave their life to defend the wall against the invading wildlings, each time the ravens arrived, the starks rode north, mostly meeting the baratheons in the shadowtower with the remaining black brothers to defeat the wildlings,usually with heavy losses on both sides. When Morra Stark died, She burried her in the Winterfell Crypts together with Lord Artos Baratheon whom brought her home after 123 years. During her reign the North prospered and it was stable. Lord Paramount Benfred Stark Benfred inherited his mother's land when she passed, not as quickly as he hoped. For years Benfred was put under house arrest for the attempt murder of his mother. He was plagued by gonorrhea for years, when he finally could reign winterfell, it was only for a few years as he died shortly after, leaving his son Rickon to rule the North. Lord Paramount Rodrik Stark Rodrik was the only son of Benfred Stark, he has one older sister and two younger sisters. Instead of being trained in being an excellent commander and fighter, Rodrik chose to be educated as a skilled steward, hoping to find a place on the King's Council that way, he served his father and grandmother for years as the Castellan of Winterfell. He increased it's defences and upgraded the barracks and stables to allow more troops to stay in Winterfell, going as far as expanding Winterfell to allow more troops to be housed. His first action as Lord of Winterfell was riding north, to defend the wall once again from Wildlings. Rodrik rode North to restore the Night's Watch once again that was overrun by the Wildlings during the War of the Usurper, shortly after he defeated the wildlings he was appointed as lord treasurer of the throne by Robert Baratheon. When the War of the Withering Dragon broke out, Rodrik called for only half his banners, though he did raise the full might of the fleet of the North and sailed to the Red Fork with most of this bannermen and his son and heir, Brandon. During the battle Rodrik was struck four times by an arrow, each time he continued fighting, but when the fourth one struck him, he fell on the ground, being deadly wounded he ordered Lord Bolton to send word to Rormund Tully that he had the command of the Northern army, he sent Lord Wull to Winterfell to inform Benjicot that he was now the Lord of Winterfell and Lord of the North and he send Lord Umber to lead the northern army and charge the enemy ranks once again, telling him: "Let it be the hour of the wolf Lord Umber". Several days after the battle, Rodrik's body was found and he was put to rest in the crypts of Winterfell. Brandon Stark Brandon Stark was the only son of Rodrik Stark, he was known for his cruelty, He was struck down during the battle of Stonehedge, his body was never found. Lord Paramount Benjicot Stark Benjicot was the son of Brandon Stark and the grandson of Rodrik Stark. After he got the word of his father and grandfather's death in battle, he rose the remaining banners of the North and called them to Winterfell, where he planned his moves with the remaining bannermen with him. When the Stormlander army landed in Sealskin Point he rode out in force and attacked them, completly destroyed the army and took anyone worthy of a ransom prisoner. He laid siege to Oldtown after the Northern fleet returned home, however he was quickly after attacked and defeated, he managed to retreat with most of his soldiers back to the ships. After his grandfather's body was found, he ordered Lord Mudd to escort the body back to Winterfell to be placed in the Crypts.